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Phuket is renowned for its fresh seafood and it is almost a rite of passage for visitors to have at least one seafood dinner during their stay on the island. All that is well and good, but one surprising facet of the seafood scene in Phuket is the wide range of restaurants serving fish and the myriad choices of style, design and environment in which to enjoy a seafood meal.

Here are Phuket’s top 10 seafood eateries ranging from simple but immensely enjoyable floating restaurants to well-established island icons of this particular cuisine – the only common denominator being the fare served.

Perhaps Phuket’s best-loved seafood restaurants, Kan Eang @ Pier has been going for decades and is a must-visit place for most visitors because of its seaside location, atmospheric grounds and wide-ranging menu that covers all the nautical bases. There’s also an onsite wine shop. Located next to Chalong pier. Read More...

Phuket’s floating seafood restaurants (‘krachang’ in Thai) are a novel way to dine out and can be found along the east coast of Phuket. The trip involves a fun, brief long-tail boat ride from Laem Hin Pier to the restaurants. It’s a great day out all year round, come rain or shine! Read More...

If there were an island-wide competition for rustic, unusual and out-of-the-way restaurants then Mor Mu Dong seafood restaurant in east Phuket would definitely win it. Essentially a seafood outlet, Mor Mu Dong also serves a full raft of chicken dishes and a delicious pork dish with kruang nam prik – a fiery chilli sauce. Read More...

Bangpae is one of the island’s all-time favourites and is located not far from Bangpae Waterfall near Thalang. Try their Tom Yam Talay (hot-and-sour Thai seafood soup), steamed blue crab, deep-fried tempura shrimp, stir-fried vegetables with cashew nuts and fresh oysters with local herbs. This seaside restaurant has a lovely backdrop of mangroves. Read More...

Opening Hours: Daily from 10:00 – 20:00

Location: About nine kilometers from the Heroines’ Monument towards Ao Por Pier and only a few hundred metres further down the road from Bangpae Waterfall and the Gibbon Rehabilitation Project. The restaurant is on the right-hand side of the road.

Just off the island, right by the Sarasin Bridge connecting Phuket to the mainland you’ll find Thanoon Seafood. Thanoon, as you may already have guessed, serves fish, lobsters, crabs, and all manner of seafood and has a live tank from which you can choose your still-living meal. Read More...

Opening Hours: Daily 10:00 - 21:30

Location: Just off Phuket island at the beginning of Phang Nga Province, right by the Sarasin Bridge

Pak Nam is a bustling seafood place recommended to those who like a bit of animation along with a good meal and is extremely popular with local diners who make sure that this is a popping spot most evenings. Pak Nam is a great seafood experience in the best of Phuket’s traditions. Read More...

Kan Eang translates as ‘relaxed’ in English and this is definitely an apt name for this large beachside restaurant just north of Chalong on Phuket’s east coast. The menu is wide ranging and all manner of fish and seafood features on it along with favourite Thai dishes. This is a unique Thai experience and all the better for it. Read More...

Opening Hours: Seven days a week 10:00 – 24:00

Location: North of Chalong Pier

Address: /3 Moo 9 Chao Fah Tawan Aok Road (North of Chalong Pier)

Tel: +66 (0)76 381 323

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Chaiyo Seafood
Chalong

Set by a ‘klong’ (backwater) near Chalong on the island’s east coast, Chaiyo (meaning ‘hurrah!’) consists of wooden salas and a little-used air-conditioned room. The restaurant’s seafood is kept fresh in underwater cages to the side so there are no worries about quality. You’ll find it on Kao Kad Road halfway between Chalong and Phuket Town.

The Sea Gypsies Fish Market in Rawai Beach offers the freshest of seafood and the guarantee that your purchase is going to benefit the local community and family-run businesses. Featuring a broad selection of often live fish and shellfish, you need only carry your still-wriggling purchases across the road, where you will find a choice of restaurants to cook them for you there and then. Located along the dirt road to the left of Rawai Pier, after the stalls selling seashells by the sea shore (try saying that three times fast!), the fish market is about 100 metres long and consists of different families selling the catch of the day along the coastal side of the promenade, with a number of simple local restaurants along the inland side. What all of the restaurants have in common is the offer to cook the fresh wares of the market for 100 baht per kilogram. Read More...